New England hit with another winter blast

BOSTON (AP) — The latest blast of snow to hit New England dumped more than a foot in part of Massachusetts and packed heavy winds that left thousands without power Sunday on Cape Cod.

Bill Sikes

Workers clears snow from the sidewalk outside a business Saturday, Feb. 15, 2014, in the Boston suburb of Hudson, Mass. Another round of snow made its way into the Northeast on the heels of a storm that brought snow and ice to the East Coast, caused at least 25 deaths and left hundreds of thousands without power. (AP Photo/Bill Sikes)

Workers clears snow from the sidewalk outside a business Saturday, Feb. 15, 2014, in the Boston suburb of Hudson, Mass. Another round of snow made its way into the Northeast on the heels of a storm that brought snow and ice to the East Coast, caused at least 25 deaths and left hundreds of thousands without power. (AP Photo/Bill Sikes)

Scott Wood, from Valparaiso, Ind., leads a group of snowmobilers as they approach Sink Road, west of Dowagiac, Mich., during a ride Saturday, Feb. 15, 2014. (AP Photo/The Herald-Palladium, Don Campbell)

Pam Yeaple walks home along East Philadelphia Street after grocery shopping in York, Pa. on Saturday, Feb. 15, 2014. An inch of new snow had fallen by mid-day in much of eastern Pennsylvania on Saturday. Forecasters predicted 2 to 5 inches before evening. (AP Photo/York Daily Record, Jason Plotkin)

A drop of rain clings to the blossom of a snowdrop in Wake Forest, N.C., on Saturday, Feb. 15, 2014. Two days after a winter storm paralyzed much of the South, the region resumed its limp toward spring. (AP Photo/Allen G. Breed)

Pam Yeaple walks home along East Philadelphia Street after grocery shopping in York, Pa. on Saturday, Feb. 15, 2014. An inch of new snow had fallen by mid-day in much of eastern Pennsylvania on Saturday. Forecasters predicted 2 to 5 inches before evening. (AP Photo/York Daily Record, Jason Plotkin)

Emanuel Comfort, 17, rides his bike in the snowfall on South George Street in York, Pa. on Saturday, Feb. 15, 2014. An inch of new snow had fallen by mid-day in much of eastern Pennsylvania on Saturday. Forecasters predicted 2 to 5 inches before evening. (AP Photo/York Daily Record, Jason Plotkin)

Coastal areas in Maine and south of Boston appeared to get the worst of the storm overnight. In Massachusetts, 15 inches of snow was reported in Sandwich and 10 inches was reported in New Bedford and Plymouth.

Wind gusts of more than 50 mph were reported Saturday night on Cape Cod, where utility NStar said fewer than 1,000 customers were without power early Monday morning. Crews from Connecticut crossed into Massachusetts to help fix the power outages after more than 13,000 customers started the morning without power.

"When they called us, they said, 'pack five days' worth of clothes," lineman Dan Buchanan told NECN-TV. "Whatever it takes."

In Maine, 17 inches of snow was reported in Hancock, and 16.7 in Eastport, the easternmost city in the U.S. The Department of Transportation said it deployed 375 trucks statewide at the height of the storm Saturday night.

In Rhode Island, transportation officials warned drivers to expect difficult travel conditions through the Monday morning commute, blaming strained road salt supplies that forced them to apply only a limited amount ahead of the storm.

The Rhode Island Department of Transportation said it was applying sand for traction on roadways that were left covered with snow and ice, but that roads were likely to refreeze Sunday night and black ice was likely. Rhode Island received between 3 and 8 inches of snow, according to the National Weather Service.

Toronto has called an extreme cold weather alert as the temperature was expected to drop to minus-5 on Sunday night. The alert, in effect until further notice, was called to trigger additional services for the homeless. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police in parts of Newfoundland were warning residents only to venture out in emergencies because of whiteout driving conditions.

The weekend snowstorm comes on the heels of an earlier storm that blanketed the East Coast with snow and ice, caused at least 25 deaths and left hundreds of thousands without power.